1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a system and method for ultraviolet purification of drinking water in a portable dynamo powered container system.
2. Background Information
Throughout the world, safe drinking water is becoming increasingly less available. This is particularly true in developing third world countries where the populations are growing faster than the technology required to provide access to safe is drinking water. According to a nonprofit group, Water. Org., “[m]ore than 3.5 million people die each year from water related diseases; 84 percent are children.”
In order to effectively respond to the growing need for safe drinking water, not only must the technologies be efficient, but they must also be appropriate for the conditions in which the technology is going to be used. In emergency situations, for example, electrical power and the purchase of batteries may be impossible for certain people because of inaccessibility to a local store or market. Even further, power grids may not exist in some parts of developing countries, and, even if the power grids do exist, electrical power may be too expensive to purchase. In such situations, “in-house” water treatment technologies that require electricity (a grid) or batteries are not an option. Accordingly, a water treatment system which does not require electricity or batteries to run would be advantageous.
Currently, there are a number of water treatment technologies that do not require grid or battery power, e.g., chemical treatments, gravity and hand pump filters, boiling, and so forth. While each of these technologies can be beneficial, they each have their own disadvantages.
Chemical treatments often impart an unpleasant taste in the water and could, if not monitored appropriately, be toxic if consumed. Further, the chemical treatments are somewhat complex to administer since factors such as water temperature and volume must be considered when deciding the appropriate effective dosage for these chemicals. Additionally, chemical treatments are time consuming, often taking up to four hours to work. Chemical treatments also incur ongoing expenses because they need to be replenished. This, in turn, requires a supply chain, which may not always be available.
In the case of gravity and hand-pump filtration systems, large microbes can often be eliminated, but viruses and bacteria are generally too small to be removed by this type of system. Certain pump filtration systems also require filter cartridges that may clog if is they become too full. Therefore, the cartridges must be replaced regularly in order to ensure efficiency in the system. Thus, pump filtration systems also suffer from the same supply chain issues as chemical treatment options.
Boiling water can be a good method for treating drinking water. However, boiling water is energy intensive. Thus, some sort of fuel source, such as expensive petroleum products or wood (which is often scarce in these countries) is required. Also, like chemical treatments, there is a significant time delay between beginning a treatment and consumption, sometimes taking up to an hour depending upon the altitude at which the boiling is being done and the time it takes the water to cool to a temperature in which it can be consumed.
Ultraviolet light (UV) purification is an extremely effective method for purifying water and does not suffer from a many of the defects discussed above. It has been used broadly for many years in industrial, municipal, residential, and portable applications around the world. Portable UV light purification systems are further described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,900,212 and 6,110,424, both entitled HAND-HELD ULTRAVIOLET WATER PURIFICATION SYSTEM, by Miles Maiden et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 6,579,495, entitled HAND-HELD ULTRAVIOLET WATER PURIFICATION SYSTEM USING SOLID STATE DEVICES, by Miles Maiden, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference. Specifically, UV light purification is much faster than chemical treatments and boiling. Furthermore, it can kill viruses and bacteria which gravity and hand pump filters cannot remove from the water, and it does not alter the water's taste and toxicity as chemical treatments do. However, UV purification does require an electrical current to operate, so batteries, a power grid, or generators have been required to operate the system.